Pre-Trip Riding in a Car with Boys - A June Pre-Trip Report

Hello humans! We are back and ready to roll - literally!

For those of you who do not know me and my family, here we are:

SJ, Tim, myself (Kelli) and H

This will be our second time as a family of 4 in Disney World. The boys had a great time when we visited last January. Here is a link to that trip report if you feel like reading about our adventure (The Colds Didn't Bother Us Anyway). This trip will be a little different - we are driving. Yep, that's right, 18+ hours in the car to get to Florida...with 2 (3 if you count Tim) crazy boys. I'm not sure I will survive, but knowing that Disney World is our destination will get me through.

Here are our tentative plans:
When: June 11-17 (we plan to leave either late on June 9 or early morning June 10)
Where: Disney's Art of Animation Resort - we always stay at Pop Century, so this will be a new experience for all of us! We got a really good deal on the Little Mermaid rooms, so we snatched that. H is OBSESSED with Cars right now. When I ask him who he wants to meet when we get to Disney World he says "McQueen and Mater!!". Even though we aren't staying in the Cars section, I'm sure we will be spending a lot of time over there.
Why: I personally don't need a "why" to go to Disney World. We decided that because H is still under 3 and "free" we might as well take advantage. We also wanted to go before Galaxy's Edge is opened, and most likely won't be able to make a trip back for another couple of years.

We have made a few ADR selections, but those are still up in the air as the boys are pretty hit or miss with how they do in restaurants. So far I have Crystal Palace breakfast (Tim said to cancel), Chef Art Smith's Homecomin' for Father's Day (most likely keeping this one), and also Ohana for early Father's Day dinner. I think I am going to cancel Ohana based on price and recent reviews. I would rather keep Homecomin' and then spend our last evening in the parks.

We have about 2 more weeks before we make FP selections. I am really excited for this as SJ has hit the 40" mark, so there will be a lot of new things he gets to try. I especially can't wait to ride Test Track with him. He is going to love it!

So, who else has driven? I know @LisaBelle drove a similar distance and didn't have the best of luck. Any pointers??? Especially with young kids who aren't easily entertained? Also, thoughts on driving to the parks vs. Disney buses? I'm leaning towards driving just because having a stroller is such a pain. Tim is trying to convince me that we don't need a stroller, but I would rather have one and park it all day then get caught carrying two boys around.

Also, who else will be there in June? I know I am hoping to get my @Tuvalu card, but would love to have some other WDWMagic meet ups!

Thank you for reading! I will post our FP selections once I have them made.

 

[LisaBelle]

After our experience last summer I advise you to have your a/c checked before you go!
We've driven from Cincinnati all but one trip. The first trip our kiddos were 4 and 7. We stopped half way and stayed in a hotel overnight on both the way down and the way back. We had a dvd player in the car. I bought $5 movies we'd never seen and then brought along some favorites. As the kids got older we sometimes drove home without stopping, especially if the kids fell asleep and traffic was light. It just depends on everyone's mood and stamina.
I never let my kids get Happy Meals from McDonald's when we were home, so we would buy them a Happy Meal at every fast food stop and the toys kept them distracted/happy for at least few minutes.
Others suggested activity bags. We had limited success with those. Coloring books are good for some down time at the resort when you want them to chill a bit if they don't take a nap or also to keep them busy when we were getting showered and ready to go to the parks or dinner, etc.
As you probably saw in my TR, I made up bags for each state we were going to drive through. I made the treats something made in that state or something that state was famous for. I kept the treats a secret and let the kids open the bag as we crossed the state line. My 18 and 23 years loved it!
When our kids were young we would play "the opposite game"-What's the opposite of hot? etc. Or a rhyming game, I Spy, Looking for letters, etc.
We brought balls and frisbees and spent 5-10 minutes playing at the rest stops AFTER everyone used the restroom.
Long road trips can be tough, but we have lots of memories (both good and bad) from our road trips. We talk about some of those moments on every road trip we take. Good luck, safe travels and have fun!

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

We have driven lots of times from Long Island. It is about 18 hours. When our three boys were little we would leave at bed time. When they woke up we would be half way there.

The idea of driving through the night is more appealing now that you put it that way!

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

After our experience last summer I advise you to have your a/c checked before you go!

Step 1 is having the car serviced before we leave

Others suggested activity bags. We had limited success with those. Coloring books are good for some down time at the resort when you want them to chill a bit if they don't take a nap or also to keep them busy when we were getting showered and ready to go to the parks or dinner, etc.

Our kids are the same with coloring. It works for a short period of time, but overall, they aren't super interested. Good idea using it for showers and getting ready. I do allow them to have their tablets at home sometimes for that, but I like this alternative. The less screen time, the better!

As you probably saw in my TR, I made up bags for each state we were going to drive through. I made the treats something made in that state or something that state was famous for. I kept the treats a secret and let the kids open the bag as we crossed the state line.

I loved this from your trip report and plan to steal it!

Long road trips can be tough, but we have lots of memories (both good and bad) from our road trips. We talk about some of those moments on every road trip we take. Good luck, safe travels and have fun!

Thank you! This trip is not going to be easy, but I am so excited for all the memories that will be made!

 

[NessNewt]

On a shorter road trip (6-7 hrs) with my oldest who was 5 at the time we borrowed some audiobooks from the library - that was helpful. The library also had individual stories on devices that just required headphones so she could listen to her book while my sister and I listened to music or our audiobook.

On another shorter road trip I had a bag of M and M's and when my youngest would start getting cranky I'd give everyone who was sitting quietly an M and M (including the adults!) If you are willing to bribe your children with sugar, I find that to be a good method, lol.

I can't wait to hear how it goes! Road tripping is always in the back of my mind but my youngest seems to be prone to carsickness.

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

On another shorter road trip I had a bag of M and M's and when my youngest would start getting cranky I'd give everyone who was sitting quietly an M and M (including the adults!) If you are willing to bribe your children with sugar, I find that to be a good method, lol.

I can't wait to hear how it goes! Road tripping is always in the back of my mind but my youngest seems to be prone to carsickness.

Thank you for the idea! I might be willing to bribe with sugar if I am at my wits end! Thankfully, we haven't had any issues with carsickness...yet....

As long as I survive, I will plan to write a trip report.

 

[LisaBelle]

Step 1 is having the car serviced before we leave

Our kids are the same with coloring. It works for a short period of time, but overall, they aren't super interested. Good idea using it for showers and getting ready. I do allow them to have their tablets at home sometimes for that, but I like this alternative. The less screen time, the better!

I loved this from your trip report and plan to steal it!

Thank you! This trip is not going to be easy, but I am so excited for all the memories that will be made!

You're welcome. Hope all goes smoothly!

 

[amjt660]

With respect to driving it has been a long time since my girls were little

We did a longer drive to the south end of PA from our home in Canada (about 8 hours of drive- longer with stops and border crossing)

Movies and arts/crafts helped out.

DW was not a fan after that trip and we have been flying ever since.

As mentioned earlier the anticipation of getting to WDW will help with the drive down but the drive back will probably be more painful.

Not knowing the vehicle layout having the ability to keep them out of physical contact of each other may be useful.
With a mini van I was prepared (did not have to do it) to put one in the second row and one in the back if they acted up too much.

With respect to driving to the parks we almost always rent a vehicle in Florida.

Driving to Epcot , HS and AK is a good idea - the extra tram +ferry/monorail at MK can be time consuming.

I wish you the best of luck and...

May the Force by with you,,,, always


Max

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

With respect to driving to the parks we almost always rent a vehicle in Florida.

Driving to Epcot , HS and AK is a good idea - the extra tram +ferry/monorail at MK can be time consuming.

I wish you the best of luck and...

May the Force by with you,,,, always


Max

Thank you Max! I was thinking MK would be the difficult / more time-consuming park to get to.

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

First, I would like to thank everyone for all the great advice! So many tips and tricks that we will be trying out. However, we have a transportation update.

We are flying! Tim was a little hesitant at first because last year when we flew he blew his ear drum on the way home. It took quite some time to heal, so I completely understand why he wanted to drive. But, some of my coworkers gave some great advice for what meds to take starting weeks before the flight, and then the day of, so he feels much better now! Fingers crossed everything goes smoothly.

We prefer flying Southwest, but with our boys, layovers would not be fun. Southwest does not fly direct to Orlando from our airport in the summer, so we thought about driving to Chicago or Indy to catch a direct flight. Those didn't sound like great options either, so I toyed around with looking into different airlines. I stumbled upon Allegiant (who flies direct to Orlando Sanford), and the prices were great! Tim was stuck on renting a car anyways so he could avoid the buses at all costs, so no big deal if we couldn't have DME (although, I always enjoy this part of the trip).

Also, with the flights, we also added one more day to our trip, so we will be arriving on June 11 and leaving on June 18. I still have to add one more hotel day, but with the removal of discounts, I might take a stab at the Priceline secret deals. I've been reading a lot about how to snag a Disney hotel on these, so fingers crossed I get it right!

Our FP day is Friday, so I will provide another update with what I get! I'm pretty sure we will not be rope dropping any parks, but we do plan to park hop everyday. Any suggestions on a FP strategy? I'm just going to try to get my most wanted first, and then fill things in from there.

 

[Rista1313]

First, I would like to thank everyone for all the great advice! So many tips and tricks that we will be trying out. However, we have a transportation update.

We are flying! Tim was a little hesitant at first because last year when we flew he blew his ear drum on the way home. It took quite some time to heal, so I completely understand why he wanted to drive. But, some of my coworkers gave some great advice for what meds to take starting weeks before the flight, and then the day of, so he feels much better now! Fingers crossed everything goes smoothly.

We prefer flying Southwest, but with our boys, layovers would not be fun. Southwest does not fly direct to Orlando from our airport in the summer, so we thought about driving to Chicago or Indy to catch a direct flight. Those didn't sound like great options either, so I toyed around with looking into different airlines. I stumbled upon Allegiant (who flies direct to Orlando Sanford), and the prices were great! Tim was stuck on renting a car anyways so he could avoid the buses at all costs, so no big deal if we couldn't have DME (although, I always enjoy this part of the trip).

Also, with the flights, we also added one more day to our trip, so we will be arriving on June 11 and leaving on June 18. I still have to add one more hotel day, but with the removal of discounts, I might take a stab at the Priceline secret deals. I've been reading a lot about how to snag a Disney hotel on these, so fingers crossed I get it right!

Our FP day is Friday, so I will provide another update with what I get! I'm pretty sure we will not be rope dropping any parks, but we do plan to park hop everyday. Any suggestions on a FP strategy? I'm just going to try to get my most wanted first, and then fill things in from there.

You'll have to let me know how that goes... we always Fly Southwest because they seem to treat their handicap folks best and making my disabled husband comfy is my #1 priority to a happy trip!

 

[krisri18]

First, I would like to thank everyone for all the great advice! So many tips and tricks that we will be trying out. However, we have a transportation update.

We are flying! Tim was a little hesitant at first because last year when we flew he blew his ear drum on the way home. It took quite some time to heal, so I completely understand why he wanted to drive. But, some of my coworkers gave some great advice for what meds to take starting weeks before the flight, and then the day of, so he feels much better now! Fingers crossed everything goes smoothly.

We prefer flying Southwest, but with our boys, layovers would not be fun. Southwest does not fly direct to Orlando from our airport in the summer, so we thought about driving to Chicago or Indy to catch a direct flight. Those didn't sound like great options either, so I toyed around with looking into different airlines. I stumbled upon Allegiant (who flies direct to Orlando Sanford), and the prices were great! Tim was stuck on renting a car anyways so he could avoid the buses at all costs, so no big deal if we couldn't have DME (although, I always enjoy this part of the trip).

Also, with the flights, we also added one more day to our trip, so we will be arriving on June 11 and leaving on June 18. I still have to add one more hotel day, but with the removal of discounts, I might take a stab at the Priceline secret deals. I've been reading a lot about how to snag a Disney hotel on these, so fingers crossed I get it right!

Our FP day is Friday, so I will provide another update with what I get! I'm pretty sure we will not be rope dropping any parks, but we do plan to park hop everyday. Any suggestions on a FP strategy? I'm just going to try to get my most wanted first, and then fill things in from there.

If you already were booked under a discount, you can call Disney to see if you can add a night to your current reservation.

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

You'll have to let me know how that goes... we always Fly Southwest because they seem to treat their handicap folks best and making my disabled husband comfy is my #1 priority to a happy trip!

Of course! I will let you know how it goes. When you choose your seats (which you pay a certain fee depending on location), there were seats that advertised extra leg room.

If you already were booked under a discount, you can call Disney to see if you can add a night to your current reservation.

I thought that might work, but when I asked my travel agent she stated it would be rack rate. I was thinking about calling myself and checking.

 

[krisri18]

Of course! I will let you know how it goes. When you choose your seats (which you pay a certain fee depending on location), there were seats that advertised extra leg room.


I thought that might work, but when I asked my travel agent she stated it would be rack rate. I was thinking about calling myself and checking.

She should be able to call and see if it can be added or you can call yourself. I'm a travel agent on the side myself, and I just added a night to 2 reservations the other day (both were booked under free dining) and the promo rate (the free dining) was able to be applied to the added night.

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

She should be able to call and see if it can be added or you can call yourself. I'm a travel agent on the side myself, and I just added a night to 2 reservations the other day (both were booked under free dining) and the promo rate (the free dining) was able to be applied to the added night.

Awesome! I will try it!

 

[krisri18]

Awesome! I will try it!

Good luck!

 

[amjt660]

If your current travel agent can not make this happen you can always find a new one..

Perhaps @krisri18 is available??

Max

 

[krisri18]

If your current travel agent can not make this happen you can always find a new one..

Perhaps @krisri18 is available??

Max

It's just depends on the cast member you get and whether there's availability at the resort. Can't hurt to try!

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

It's just depends on the cast member you get and whether there's availability at the resort. Can't hurt to try!

I tried and they said that because my reservation is with a travel agent then I will have to go through them.

 

[MeeskaMooska0714]

Well just like that, our FP day has come and gone and we are less that 60 days out!! I was able to get a FP for everything I really wanted (SDD, FOP, SDMT), and in all honesty, the times were pretty good as well. I will probably do some shuffling of plans seeing how we have park hoppers, but here is our tentative schedule:

6.11: arrive late afternoon - either stick around the resort to swim and explore or go to Disney Springs (I still haven't been here since the change from Downtown Disney, but it will always be Downtown Disney to me).

6.12:
EPCOT (AM)
Hollywood Studios (PM)
I would like to start our day in World Showcase and enter through the International Gateway. Any pointers on the best way to do this? Park at HS and walk? Park at DS and take a bus to an EPCOT resort?

6.13:
MK (AM)
AK (PM)

6.14:
AK (AM)
EPCOT (PM)

6.15:
HS (AM)
EPCOT (PM)

6.16 (Father's Day):
MK (AM)
Lunch at Chef Art Smith's Homecomin' (thinking about switching our day around and making this a brunch, but I figured that might be a crazy time at DS)
AK (PM)

6.17 (our last park day ):
HS (AM)
MK (PM)

Our flight doesn't leave until about 3:30pm on the 18th, so we will probably do some pool time or Disney Springs. Seeing how we are flying into Orlando Sanford, we won't have to worry about DME. Anybody ever fly through here before? I'm assuming it is the same size as our airport here, so security should be much faster than MCO, but I don't want to not give ourselves enough time.

Thanks again for following along. Let me know if any of your plans coincide!!

 

[Dave B]

First, I would like to thank everyone for all the great advice! So many tips and tricks that we will be trying out. However, we have a transportation update.

We are flying! Tim was a little hesitant at first because last year when we flew he blew his ear drum on the way home. It took quite some time to heal, so I completely understand why he wanted to drive. But, some of my coworkers gave some great advice for what meds to take starting weeks before the flight, and then the day of, so he feels much better now! Fingers crossed everything goes smoothly.

We prefer flying Southwest, but with our boys, layovers would not be fun. Southwest does not fly direct to Orlando from our airport in the summer, so we thought about driving to Chicago or Indy to catch a direct flight. Those didn't sound like great options either, so I toyed around with looking into different airlines. I stumbled upon Allegiant (who flies direct to Orlando Sanford), and the prices were great! Tim was stuck on renting a car anyways so he could avoid the buses at all costs, so no big deal if we couldn't have DME (although, I always enjoy this part of the trip).

Also, with the flights, we also added one more day to our trip, so we will be arriving on June 11 and leaving on June 18. I still have to add one more hotel day, but with the removal of discounts, I might take a stab at the Priceline secret deals. I've been reading a lot about how to snag a Disney hotel on these, so fingers crossed I get it right!

Our FP day is Friday, so I will provide another update with what I get! I'm pretty sure we will not be rope dropping any parks, but we do plan to park hop everyday. Any suggestions on a FP strategy? I'm just going to try to get my most wanted first, and then fill things in from there.

If you call Disney they sometimes have been able to add a day or two at the deal we originally booked, it depends on their inventory, cant hurt to call